As display products are gaining wide applicability, display manufacturers now focus on the design and development of irregular shaped panel such as IponeX's notch design. FIG. 1 shows an existing irregular shaped panel. The substrate or display area of an irregular shaped panel may have a circular, polygonal, or other irregular, non-rectangular shape. As pixels in the display area are often arranged in an array for easier design and driving, a shading layer is used between the display and non-display areas to achieve slant/curved edges.
Shading layer for existing irregular shaped panels mainly has two structures respectively shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. FIG. 2A depicts a conventional linear shading layer 1 having a jagged edge to approximate a slant or curve edge between the display and non-display areas. A strong color or brightness contrast is presented along the jagged edge of the bright display area and dark non-display area. The jagged edge is therefore visible to the viewer, compromising the display panel's visual effect and user experience. FIG. 2B depicts another conventional shading layer which follows the edge of the actual display area. The jagged feel is reduced by this structure. However, the shading layer 2 is not aligned with the pixel arrangement and pixels along the edge may have their RGB sub-pixels covered by the shading layer 2 with different areas. The color mix along the edge is as such perceived differently from other locations of the display panel, thereby causing color shift or non-uniform brightness (mura) along the edge of the area of notch or irregularity of an irregular shaped panel.